The dust has settled and Blitz is making final preparations for his long hibernation. While you lesser beings are trudging through months of cold, snow and ice, this bear will cozily be sleeping away and looking forward to the 2020 football season.
Before Blitz takes his long rest, how about some season-ending awards? All this week, Blitz will be giving out some awards for each conference in northeast Indiana, and what about one more prediction?
Today we begin with the NECC.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: RYAN BRANDT, ANGOLA
Some may question this pick, but Brandt plays a position where if you are truly elite you are rarely seen. The Purdue commitment dominated at his safety spot, with his ballhawking prowess effectively sealing off half the field for opponents.
Brandt looked like a man among boys many Friday nights with the Hornets, who took a step back with their 4-6 season but not due to any lapse in play from the senior.
While others put up big numbers, the best player on the field in the NECC was without a doubt Brandt.
HONORABLE MENTION: Brandon Pruitt, West Noble; Jake Fulk, Churubusco; Laban Davis, Eastside.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: BRANDON PRUITT, WEST NOBLE
Pruitt could have very well have been Player of the Year, but he fits better here in Blitz’s mind.
Consider the fact that Pruitt accounted for nearly 1,500 yards of total offense, 15 total touchdowns, 84 tackles, 27 TFL and 10 sacks for a team that went 9-0 in the regular season.
Sure, there were some talented guys on the roster as well, including quarterback Kyle Mawhorter, Josh Gross and younger brother Baxton, but it is highly improbable that the Chargers would have won 10 games for just the second time in program history without Brandon Pruitt.
HONORABLE MENTION: Jake Fulk, Churubusco; Lane Burns, Eastside; Seth VanWagner, Garrett; Ethan Hoover, Prairie Heights.
BREAKOUT PLAYER: BRAXTON PRUITT, WEST NOBLE
With all the attention on older brother Brandon, the sophomore Braxton flew under the radar for most of the season with the Chargers.
But No. 33 showed up time after time when you watched West Noble in person, with the statistics backing up his efforts. In his first year of significant varsity action, the sophomore amassed 61 tackles, 20 tackles for loss and a team-high 13 sacks while manning the defensive front.
Little Pruitt is going to be a terror in the NECC the next two seasons.
HONORABLE MENTION: Kyle Trick, Angola; Hunter Bianski, Churubusco.
COACH OF THE YEAR: MONTE MAWHORTER, WEST NOBLE
No Chargers team since 1981 had reached double-digit wins prior to this past season, with West Noble winning its first 10 of the year.
While the Chargers had some solid players, it was Mawhorter who turned the roster into a team, sweeping through the NECC without a single game being decided by single digits.
Over the past two seasons, West Noble has gone 18-4 under Mawhorter. Will the Chargers keep it going in 2020?
HONORABLE MENTION: Paul Sade, Churubusco; Todd Herndon, Fremont; Todd Mason, Eastside.
GAME OF THE YEAR: FAIRFIELD 8, CENTRAL NOBLE 0, OT
Anytime you have a scoreless game going into overtime, it has to be on the short list for game of the year.
Yes, this game did not decide the division championships in any way, but it was still an exciting game in Week 3.
Dalton Cripe scored on the first play of overtime for Fairfield and the Falcons converted a two-point conversion to go up eight. On 4th-and-goal from the 2-yard-line on the next possession, Central Noble quarterback Sawyer Yoder was flushed from the pocket and scrambled, but was eventually brought down for a 24-yard loss, ending the game.
HONORABLE MENTION: West Noble 33, Churubusco 20; West Noble 41, Angola 27; Eastside 14, Angola 13.
BLITZ’S PICK TO BE 2020 DIVISION CHAMPIONS: ANGOLA (BIG SCHOOL), EASTSIDE (SMALL SCHOOL)
After a regression in 2019, Angola will show that the NECC only got a year respite between dominant performances out of the Hornets, with Coach Andy Thomas’ team back amongst the elite in the NECC next year.
Meanwhile, with the likes of Laban Davis, Matt Firestine and Lane Burns all back, along with plenty more production, Eastside should reign supreme in the small school division in 2020.
These opinions represent those of Blitz and Outside the Huddle. No opinions expressed on Outside the Huddle represent those of any of our advertisers. Follow Blitz on Twitter at Blitz_OTH
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